Disneyland Paris has launched A Celebration in Arendelle, its first show to take place primarily on water, introducing three custom-designed boats built exclusively for the production set within the park’s World of Frozen land.
Set designer Thomas Gallou led the creative and technical development of the vessels, each conceived with a distinct visual identity tied to the characters and world of the Frozen franchise.
The first boat, associated with the character Kristoff, features Arendelle’s official colors and its emblematic flower, the crocus. Its most distinctive element is a bow sculpted in the likeness of Sven, Kristoff’s reindeer companion. “The first image that came to mind when I discussed the project with directors Françoise Baffioni and Matteo Borghi was a bow shaped in Sven’s shape,” Gallou said. “It’s an elegant, highly crafted, handmade sculpture.” A second, barge-style vessel highlights the villagers of Arendelle and incorporates the snowflower, the festival’s central symbol. The third boat, designed for Anna and Elsa, reflects the two queens’ signature color palette, blending warm and cool tones drawn from the snowflower motif.
Designing functional show boats presented engineering challenges that differed significantly from the team’s previous work on parade floats. “On a parade float, all the technical elements are hidden,” Gallou explained. “If we had done that on a boat, it would have caused serious issues.” Instead, lighting, special effects, and steering mechanisms were integrated directly into the aesthetic design. The boats are hand-piloted by trained cast members, with no automated navigation or safety rails.
The scale and layout of the boats were shaped by the physical constraints of the fjord-style lagoon within World of Frozen, a land that was still under construction when design work began. “I still remember my first site visit, discovering vast, empty spaces and having to project what would become the village of Arendelle, the harbour, the entire lake—and consequently the boats that would navigate it,” Gallou recalled. The team also factored in sightlines, ensuring that interiors would be visible and fully finished given that guests observe the vessels from multiple angles and elevated vantage points.
To realize the project, Disneyland Paris partnered with French shipbuilder Couach Construction Navale, based on the Arcachon Basin and operating for over 120 years, which handled the structural construction. Decorative work on Kristoff’s boat was carried out by Prelud, a fabrication studio near Dijon with a long-standing relationship with Disneyland Paris, whose artisans specialize in sculpture, painting, and carpentry. In total, nearly 400 suppliers contributed to the broader transformation of the area, with 83 percent of them based in France.
Gallou, who is marking a decade at Disneyland Paris this year, described the moment the boats were craned into the lagoon as a career highlight. “Watching the boats lift into the air before being set down into the lagoon, then seeing them float and discovering them for the first time in daylight, reflected in the water like a mirror. That was magic.”
A Celebration in Arendelle is a 15-minute show presented multiple times daily as part of the Snowflower Festival. The production features live performance, lighting, special effects, and music from the Frozen franchise, including “Let It Go” and “Into the Unknown,” staged across Arendelle Bay within Disney Adventure World.
Planning a Visit for Opening Day
Park goers intending to visit on March 29th, the inauguration date of Disney Adventure World and the opening day of World of Frozen, should be prepared for exceptionally high attendance. Disneyland Paris has confirmed that a dedicated wait line will be in place to manage access to World of Frozen, and that it cannot guarantee entry to the land or its attractions — including the Frozen Ever After ride — for all park goers on that date. The park is advising multi-day visitors to prioritize Disneyland Park on March 29th and plan their visit to Disney Adventure World and World of Frozen for the following days, when crowds are expected to be more manageable.
Cover image courtesy of Disneyland Paris.
